It’s almost tax time again! For low-income Ontarians, filing your income tax return is important as you may be able to benefit from tax credits that will either increase your income or reduce the amount of taxes you have to pay. Even if you don’t owe any money, you can get refundable credits that will …
Updates
MARCH 21: #UNITEAGAINSTRACISM | CROSS-CANADA DAY OF ACTION / Journée d’Action Transcanadienne: Unissons-Nous Contre Le Racisme!
Here’s an important call to action from our partners at the Migrant Rights Network. Migrants and refugees are being forced out from their homes in unprecedented numbers globally. Here in Canada, anti-immigrant protests and racially motivated attacks are on the rise. Meanwhile, right wing politicians who use anti-immigrant and racist rhetoric are getting rewarded with …
Human Rights Tribunal ruling on insurance companies and CPP-D: Reilly v. Ford
In a disappointing decision released on January 18, 2019, the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario ruled that insurance companies do not discriminate when they deduct benefits received from a Canada Pension Plan Disability pension from long-term disability insurance payments. Background on the Case Disability insurance plays a critical role in ensuring that those who are …
End Employment Insurance discrimination against women / Mettre fin à la discrimination
* La version française suit * End Employment Insurance discrimination against women In the mid-1990s, Canada’s unemployment insurance system underwent a massive change. At that time, whether or not an unemployed worker qualified for payments was based on the number of weeks that they had worked before they lost their job. Although there were lots …
Changes Ontario is Proposing to OW and ODSP
On November 22, Minister Lisa MacLeod announced a number of proposed changes to the Ontario Works (OW) and Ontario Disability Support Program (ODSP) system. We have prepared several backgrounders to help you understand particular proposals and what they could mean for low-income people in Ontario. We also hosted a one-hour webinar to share our analysis of …
Ontario Court of Appeal ruling is a victory for Uber workers
In a ground breaking case, the Ontario Court of Appeal has decided that a clause in Uber’s contract with its drivers – which requires them to take legal disputes with the company to the Netherlands to be resolved – is “illegal” and “unconscionable”. This case offers workers some important protections where there may be unfair …
OW & ODSP: What is a “Health Spending Account”? / OT & POSPH : Qu’est-ce qu’un « compte gestion-santé »?
What a “Health Spending Account” might mean to people on OW & ODSP On November 22, the Minister of Children, Community and Social Services announced a number of proposed changes to the social assistance system in Ontario. Among these proposed changes is the creation of something called a Health Spending Account. While there are currently …
Improving access to justice for Indigenous people: New inter-regional Gladue Briefs Project
Community legal clinics in the south-west region of Ontario, along with Thunder Bay’s Kinna’aweya legal clinic and the Income Security Advocacy Centre, have joined together in a Gladue Briefs Project with the aim of ensuring that administrative tribunals make decisions that better take into account the circumstances of Indigenous people who appear before them. Background …
S.A. v. Metro Vancouver Housing: Supreme Court Decision Preserves Access to Social Programs after Inheritance
In an important decision released on January 25, 2019, the Supreme Court of Canada has confirmed that families can make arrangements to ensure that, after their death, their loved ones with disabilities will be financially supported while at the same time maintaining access to much-needed social services and housing. Background on the Case Families often …
Ontario 2019 Pre-Budget Consultations: Have your say!
The provincial government has asked for input into the upcoming 2019 provincial Budget. There are currently two pre-budget consultation processes that you can plug into: The Ontario Legislature’s Standing Committee on Finance and Economic Affairs is conducting hearings across the province and accepting written submissions until 5:00pm on January 29. The Minister of Finance is hosting …
